Prince of Wales meets BARB

THE Prince of Wales met volunteers from Burnham charity BARB during a visit to the flood-hit Somerset Levels.

BARB's Mark Newman and Roger Flower were among scores of organisations invited to the event in Stoke St Gregory yesterday (February 4) to thank those who are providing support in the area.

Prince Charles spoke to local people affected by the floods before meeting members of the fire service, police, ambulance, council and volunteer groups.

He was taken to the village of Muchelney by boat and later climbed onto a tractor-towed trailer for a journey along flooded roads to a farm in Thorney.

BARB's boat crew helped deliver supplies to the cut-off village of Muchelney during several days in January and the charity also evacuated a lady stranded in her flood-hit home for 13 days in North Curry. They have also assisted in several other weather-related call-outs over the past month.

BARB Chairman Mark Newman said: "The Prince was very interested to hear about the work that BARB does and was impressed that it is fully run by volunteers."

Prince Charles visited the Somerset Levels as patron of the Prince's Countryside Fund and announced £50,000 of help to the flood-hit region.

The Duke of Westminster matched the donation with another £50,000 for the flood area. An additional £300,000 of government funding to aid people across England affected by floods has also been announced.

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The Prince told reporters that he "feels very sorry for all the people affected by the flooding".

BARB - which operates an inshore rescue boat and two rescue hovercrafts - is one of several organisations in the region helping with flood relief work as part of the Somerset Civil Contingencies Unit.

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